Ice-conveyer



H B. WOOD ICE CONVEYER.

APPLICATION FILED Juana, IM-B.

1,341,697. Patented June 1, 1920.

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ATTO RN EY H. B. WOOD.

ICE CONVEYER.

APPLICATION FILED iUNE 13, 1918-.

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INVENTOR,

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I, WITNESSES ATTORNEY H. B. WOOD.

lcE, CONVEY-ER. APPLICATION. FIL ED JUNE [3, 1 918. 1,341,697.. 3 Patented June 1, 1920.

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ATTQRN EY HAROLD BLAKE WOOD, 0F HUDSON, NEW YORK, A'SSIGNOR TO GIFFORD-WOOD GOM- PANY, OF I-IUDEaQN,v NEW YORK.

ICE-CONVEYER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 1, i920.

Continuation of application Serial No. 804,051, filed December 1, 1913. This ,.app1ication filed June 13, 1918. Serial No. 239,759.

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I, HAROLD B. WOOD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hudson, in the county of Columbia and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Ice-conveyer, of which the fol lowing is a specification.

This invention has reference to ice conveyers, although adapted to convey other materials than ice, and its object is to provide means for elevating the ice from the water to a suitable higher level from which the ice is distributed to lower and still higher levels for direction into suitable storage buildings, commonly known as ice houses.

In accordance with the invention, cakes of ice of the usual storage size are floated onto the lower run of an inclined endless conveyer, such lower run dipping into the water containing the ice after the latter has been cut up into the desired sizes. The high end of the inclined conveyer is supported on a tower of moderate height and usually about half the height of the storage or ice houses. Moreover, the inclined conveyer is relatively short. Leading from the tower is another conveyer which may be termed the rear or distributing conveyer and such rear conveyer may be much longer than the first named or front conveyer so as to extend along a long line of ice houses. The rear conveyer is carried at the front end by the upper portion of the short tower and that portion of the rear conveyer extending along the ice houses is capable of up and down movement which, at the'lowest level, may be considerably below the'top of the short tower and at the highest level may be considerably above the top. of the short tower.

The two conveyers closely approach at the intermediate point represented by the short tower and both at such point are driven by appropriate gearing which may there be under the control of an operator. s. i

The arrangement is such that while the short or front conveyer employstwo conveyer chains connected by flights, the rear conveyer which may be several times the length of the front conveyer can be conveniently made of a single conveyer'chain, whereby the .costof construction is greatly reduced without in any manner sacrificing efiicienoy. Moreover, the intermediate drive have been maintained level, while the parts extending to the water have slanted andthe power has been applied to the extreme rear portion of the distributing or rear conveyer. Furthermore, the division of the conveyer structure at the intermediate tower results in the prevention of accumulations of ice due to the freezing of water on the conveyer, this having been found to be highly advantageous in the operation of the structure.

In accordance with the invention, the front conveyor is of the undershot type, that is, the ice cakes are propelled by the lower run to the desired elevation, and the rear conveyer, which receives the cakes from the front conveyer, is of the overshot type, with the advantage that the rear conveyer, which is far more extensive than the front conveyer, may comprise but a single chain. 7

An apparatus built in accordance with the invention has advantages over prior, constructions in the rapidity and; facility, of

hand-ling the cakes or blocks of ice from the water to the entrance of the icehouses.

The invention will be, best understood from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings; forming part of this specification,,with the understanding, however, that the invention is not confined to any strict conformity withthe showthe upper end of the intermediate tower and some immediately adjacent.,p'arts.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the tower omitting some adjacent parts shown inFig. 2;

ion

Fig. 4c is a section on-the line/t l ofF 3, showing the conveyer chains and certain parts illustrated in Fig. 2 but omitted in Fig. 5 is a section on the line 5'-5 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the conveyers when arranged for elevating two cakes of ice by each flight.

Fig. 7 is a diagram similar to Fig. 6 illustrating the arrangement for elevating single cakes of ice by each flight.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the two conveyers showing the relative arrangement of the chains and flights.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a conveyer 1 which, as indicated in Fig. 8, is composed of two spaced endless sprocket chains 2, 3 respectively, connected by flights 4. These chains travel on chain slides 5, 6 supported upon suitable uprights-7 constituting a framework for the conveyer 1. The conveyer support is arranged to extend into and over the body of water in which the ice to be elevated is located, and this body of water is indicated in Fig. 1, at 8, the lower run of the conveyer 1 dipping into the water to a depth permitting cakes of ice to be floated into the path of the flights 4 of the lower run. In order to support the cakes of ice while being elevated by the conveyer, slats 9 are arranged between the chain supports carrying the lower run of the conveyer.

At a suitable point, which may be back of but relatively close to the shore line,there is erected a tower 10, the particular structure of the tower being immaterial to the invention and, therefore, neither shown or described in detail. In spaced relation to the tower 10 is an icehouse 11 which may have numerous entrances 12, but as the structure of the icehouse is not material to the invention it is neither shown nor described in detail. Extending along the front of the icehouse are uprights 13, these uprights also being continued toward the tower 10 as close to the latter as necessary. Guided by the uprights or posts 13 is an elongated conveyer support 14 conveniently carried by cables 15 extending over pulleys 16 at or adjacent to the tops of the uprights or posts 13 so that the conveyer support 14 may be elevated or lowered, as desired, and maintained in a substantially level position. Extending from the forward end of the conveyer support 14 is a connecting conveyer support 17 having a pivotal or hinge connection 18 with the corresponding side of the tower 10 near the top of the latter. It is desirable that the conveyer support 14 have a range of travel to permit ice to be moved therefrom into the ice house 11 through any one of the doors 12 from the lowermost portion of the icehouse to the uppermost portion thereof, the front end of the conveyer support 17 being at a fixed height on the tower 10 near the top of the latter, while the other or rear end of the conveyer support 17 participates in the up and down movements of the conveyer support 14.

In order to about equally distribute the movement of the conveyer supports 17 with respect to the tower 10, the latter is made of a height about half that of the up and 1 down travel of the support 14, or the tower 10 is approximately half the height of the icehouse. When the filling of the icehouse commences the support 14 is at its lowermost level and consequently the support 17 declines from the tower to the support 14. hen the icehouse is about half full the supports 14 and 17 are both about level. When the icehouse is being filled above the intermediate point the support 17 inclines.

Extending lengthwise through the supports 14 and 17 is an endless conveyer chain 19 with flights 2O thereon, the chain and flights constituting a conveyer. But one chain is used in said conveyer which forms the rear or distributing conveyer of the structure.

Mounted on the tower 10 are two shafts 21,

22, the shaft 21 being provided with sprocket wheels 23 engaged by the chains 2 and 3 of the forward conveyer. The shaft 22 which is arranged beneath the shaft 21 is provided with a single sprocket wheel 24 about which the chain 19 passes. The shaft 21 has a gear wheel 25 fast thereto and the shaft 22 has a gear wheel 26 fast thereto meshing with the gear wheel 25. Mounted on the tower is another shaft 27 carrying a pinion 28 meshing with the gear wheel 25.

i The shaft 27 also carries a pulley 29 through which power may be applied to the shaft 27, as by a belt, or this pulley may be representative of any suitable driving means. In order that an operator may have control of the application of power, a clutch 30 is arranged to couple the shaft 27 and pinion 28 together or to release the shaft from the pinion, the clutch being under the control of a lever 31 within the reach of an operator on a platform 32 on the tower 10. Of course, the structures, as described, may be variously changed so long as the purposes for which these structures are designed are carried out.

The chain 19 passes over an idler pulley or support 33 on the hinge member 18 and from the idler 33 extends to the sprocket 24. By this means power applied to the pulley 29 is transmitted through the shaft 27 and by way of the clutch 30 to the pinion 28 which drives the gear wheel 25 and with it the sprockets 23, the gear wheel 26 and the sprocket 24. Since the gear wheels 25 and 26 are in mesh they rotate in opposite directions, wherefore, with the lower run of the conveyer 1 rising the upper run of the conveyer represented by the chain 19 is moving in a direction away from the tower on the opposite side thereof from the conveyer 1.

When cakes of ice floating in the water 8 are directed over the slats 9 so as to be in the path of the flights 4, these cakes are engaged by the underrun of the conveyer 1 and moved upwardly along the inclined conveyer frame to the tower 10. The conveyer 1 being of the undershot type carries the cakes of ice between the chains 2 and 3 and out of engagement therewith and when the upper ends of the slats 9 are reached the cakes of ice are pushed by the flights onto the top of the tower out of the way of the conveyer. There the cakes of ice are received upon slats 341-, each tapering from the receiving end toward the discharge end, which last named end is within the range of the conveyer 19. Instead of employing taper slats for the transfer of the ice from the front conveyer to the rear conveyer, straight slats 35, indicated in Fig. 7 be employed.

The transfer of ice from the front elevating conveyer to the rear distributing conveyer is accomplished with elther the taper slats 34: or the straight slats 35, but the taper slats have the advantage of permitting the elevation of two cakes of ice in tandem by each flight 4. lVhen two cakes of ice in tandem are elevated, as diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 6, the first cake to reach the slats 34 gravitates toward the thin ends of the taper slats because of such taper, which, when the slats are in position, is downward. The result is that the first one of two cakes of ice propelled by a flight gets a start over the second cake and with the aid of gravity then moves more rapidly than the first cake and so is caught by a flight 20 of the conveyer chain 19 and moved with said conveyer chain 19 a suificient distance in advance of the second cake to permit the next flight of the conveyer 19 to engage the second cake and propel it. In the structure shown in Fig. 7, no means are provided for causing a more rapid progression of the cakes of ice after leaving the first conveyer than that had on the conveyer, and, hence, no separation of cakes of ice would take place. Consequently the structure of Fig. 7 is necessarily confined to a single cake of ice for each flight 4.

In order to prevent the mechanism from running in the wrong direction a suitable safety device, such as a ratchet 36 and pawl 37 may be provided, the ratchet 36 being mounted on the shaft 21. The safety device shown may be taken as indicative of any suitable device for the purpose. The advantage of the clutch 30 is that the power may.

means may be promptly disconnected from the driven parts in case of necessity.

The low tower 10 which rises to about half the height to which icemay be stored in the icehouse is advantageous in that the ice elevating and storing'mechanism, as a whole, may be made in two parts, with an elevator or conveyer provided with. a fixed inclined runway rising from the water level to about the top of the tower. The runway The delivery runway comprises two parts hinged together where joining with the forward part hinged to the tower near its upper end so as to receive from the transfer bars or parts connected thereto. The more remote portion of the delivery. runway is provided with adjusting means, whereby said remote portion or section is always substantially horizontal and may be moved to levels above or below the top of the tower. The delivery runway carries but a single chain and may be several'times as long as the elevating or forward runway, which latter is a fixed runway. The delivery chain may extend the full length of the delivery runway and engages a sprocket in the tower beneath the sprockets of the forward elevator or conveyer. The gearing provided is a positive-gearing and is mounted on the tower to drive the sprockets and the chains controlled thereby in opposite directions.

The shaft carrying the sprockets for the forward conveyer is, in the structure shown, a horizontal shaft and is separated sufiiciently from the shaft beneath it to permit the blocks of ice to pass along the runway under the higher shaft when the blocks have been sufficiently elevated by the endless chain belt or conveyer engaged and propelled by the sprockets. The second or lower shaft is also horizontal and carries but a single sprocket so that the blocks of ice pass over it.

The distributing gallery, comprising the two sections of runway hinged to-each other and to the tower in eccentric relation to the second shaft, necessitates a longitudinal movement of the conveyer or endless chain driven by the sprocket on the second driving shaft and extending along both sections of the delivery runway. This movement is easily taken care of by a slack in the chain and avoids the necessity of removing or replacing sections when the rear runway is straightened out or flexed in its adjustments which necessity occurs where the elevating and the delivery runways are an elfectively one-piece structure and a single conveyer runs from the water to the rear end of the delivery runway, power being applied at such rear end to drive the conveyer.

' Moreover, the lower temperatures under which elevating and storing mechanisms for ice work cause the formation of ice upon the conveyers and adjacent parts. If the con veyer be continuous from the Water to the end of the delivery, the conveyed ice travels on the upper run of the conveyer throughout and water raised with the ice and conveyer will freeze and accumulate upon the conveyer to an obstructive extent, compelling the stoppage of the mechanism from time to time until the accumulated ice can be removed from the conveyers. WVater also drips through the runways and freezes, causing further obstructions.

With the invention the forward or elevating conveyer is of course wet by the water in which it dips, but this conveyer is a short one and such small amount of ice as may be formed on the underrun of the conveyer is removed therefrom during the travel of the conveyer into and through the water when again reaching the water. There is no ice formed by drippings from the upper run through the underrun. Experience has shown that no material or obstructive amount of ice forms on the short elevating conveyer. Since water does not reach. the distributing conveyer accumulations of ice due to the freezing of water on the second conveyor do not occur at all.

This application is a continuation of my application #804,051, filed December 1, 1913, in so far as the two applications have parts in common.

What is claimed is 1. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering it to an icehouse, comprising an endless elevating conveyer having an ice runway and dipping at the lower end into the body of water with the lower run of the conveyer constituting the propelling means for ice along the runway, and an enclless conveyer in position to receive on its upper run ice delivered from the upper end of the first named conveyer and move the ice to the icehouse.

2. Means for conveying ice from a body of water to an icehouse, comprising an inclined endless elevating conveyer provided with an ice runway associated with the lower run of the conveyer and along which the ice from the water is propelled to the top of the conveyer and there delivered, and another end-.

less conveyer extending to the icehouse and provided with a receiving end adjacent to the delivery end of the first named convever and'associated therewith to receive the ice on its upper run. I

3. Means for conveying ice from a body of water to an icehouse, comprising an inclined ice runway, an endless conveyer having a lower run associated with the runway to propel blocks of ice up the runway by said lower run, another endless conveyer constituting a delivery conveyer and movable into operative relation to the icehouse, said delivery conveyer having a receiving end adjacent to the delivery end of the first named conveyer with the upper run of the second conveyer in position to receive the blocks of ice delivered by the first named conveyer, and transfer means for supporting the blOCks of ice in transit from one conveyer to the other.

4. Means for conveying ice from a body of water to an icehouse, comprising an inclined ice runway, an endless conveyer having a lower run associated with the runway to propel blocks of ice up the runway by said lower run, another conveyer constituting a delivery conveyer and movable into operative relation to the icehouse, said ;delivery conveyer having a receiving end adjacent to the delivery end of the first named conveyer with the upper run of the second conveyer in position to receive the blocks of'ice delivered by the first named conveyer, and transfer means for supporting the blocks of ice in transit from one conveyer to the other, said transfer means sloping downwardly from the first named conveyer toward the second named conveyer to cause acceleration of the movement of the ice from one conveyer to the other conveyer.

. 5. Means for elevating ice from a body of water to an icehouse, comprising a doublechain endless conveyer with the lower run at the lower end dipping in the body of water, an ice runway associated with said lower run, and a distributing conveyer comprising a single endless chain with the upper run located to receive blocks of ice elevated by and discharged from the lower run of the first named conveyer.

6. Means for transferring ice from a body of water to an icehouse, comprising an elevating conveyer with a fixed inclined ice runway associated with the lower run of the conveyer, a tower of less height than the level to which ice is to be stored in the icehouse and to which tower the high end of the runway is secured, another runway hinged at the forward end to the tower and comprising two sections hinged together at a distance from the tower with the section more distant from the tower maintained substantially horizontal in up and down movement and the forward section of the same runway participating in the up and down movements, an endless conveyer associated with the second named runway and extending.

the conveyer, a tower of less height than the level to which ice is to be stored in the icehouse and to which tower the high end of the runway is secured, another runway hinged at the forward end to the tower and comprising two sections hinged together at a distance from the tower with the section more distant from the tower maintained substantially horizontal in up and down movements and the forward section of the same runway participating in the up and down movements, an endless conveyer associated with the second named runway and extending into the tower with the upper run in position to receive blocks of ice elevated by the lower run of the elevating conveyer, and means at the tower for driving the conveyer, said tower also having therein transfer means for the ice sloping downwardly from the delivery end of the elevating conveyer to the receiving end of the second named conveyer.

8. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering it to an icehouse, comprising two separate associated endless conveyers, one dipping into the water and rising therefrom and at the end remote from the water delivering to the second conveyer, andsaid second conveyer delivering the ice received by it to the icehouse, the first named conveyer being an undershot conveyer elevating the ice by its lower run and the second conveyer being an overshot conveyer receiving the ice on and delivering it by the upper run.

9. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering it to an icehouse, comprising two separate associated conveyers,'one dipping into the water and rising therefrom and at the end remote from the water delivering to the second conveyer, and said second conveyer delivering the ice received by it to the icehouse, the first named conveyer being an undershot conveyer elevating the ice by its lower run and the second conveyer being an overshot conveyer receiving the ice on and delivering it by the upper run, said conveyers having ice transfer means at their adjacent ends sloping downwardly from the first toward the second conveyer to cause acceleration of the ice moving from one conveyer to the other, whereby the first conveyer may elevate the blocks of ice in tandem and the second conveyer receive the blocks of ice in separated relation one to the other.

10. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering the elevated ice to an icehouse, comprising two conveyers, one constituting an undershot elevating conveyer with its lower end dipping in the body of water and the upper end provided with a drive shaft for the conveyer, and the second conveyer constituting an overshot distributing conveyer having" a drive shaft arranged beneath and connected to the first named shaft, whereby the two conveyers may be driven from a source of power, with the power applied at the meeting ends of the conveyers and both conveyers free from the effects of drippings.

11. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering the elevated ice to an icehouse, comprising two conveyers, one constituting an elevating conveyer with. its lower end dipping in the body of water and the other end provided with adrive shaft for the conveyer, and the second conveyer having a drive shaft therefor arranged beneath the first named shaft and connected therewith, whereby the two conveyersmay be driven from a source of power with the'power applied at the meeting ends of the conveyers, the elevating conveyer having an ice runway associated with the lower run of the conveyer and the second named conveyer having an ice runway associated with the upper run thereof, whereby ice elevated by the lower run of the first conveyer may be delivered onto the upper run of the second conveyer.

12. Means for elevating blocks of ice from a body of water and delivering the elevated blocks of ice to an icehouse, comprising an endless elevating conveyerwith spaced flights, a runway associated with the lower run of the conveyer and said runway and-lower run of the conveyer dipping at the lower end into the body of water, a distributing conveyer having the receiving end associated with and lower than the delivery end of the first named conveyer with the upper run of the second conveyer constituting the receiving portion thereof, and

slanting transfer means for the ice receiving the blocks at the high end from the elevating conveyer and delivering them at the lower end onto the distributing conveyer, whereby a plurality of blocks in engagement one with the other may be elevated by the first named conveyer and separated and delivered one at a time to the second named conveyer.

18. In a power driven ice elevating and storing mechanism, the combination of a tower having a height approximately one half that to which ice is to be elevated, two substantially horizontal transfer bars near the top of said tower, an elevator comprising a fixed inclined runway having a bottom joining the upper edges of said bars, elevator sprockets mounted above said bars, and a chain mounted on said sprockets with its lower run operating to slide blocks of ice from the water up said runway to said bars, a delivery runway comprising two sections hinged to each other, a hinge fixed to said tower to connect one end of one of said sections to said tower in position to receive the blocks of ice from said bars, adj usting means for" at will setting the other section of said runway substantially horizontal at levels above or below the top of said tower, a driving sprocket mounted on said towerbeneath said elevator sprockets and between said bars, an endless delivery chain mounted to run on said sprocket and to extend the length of said runway, with its upper run constituting the active run, and positive gearing between said elevator sprockets and said driving sprocket to drive them in opposite directions.

14:. In a power driven ice elevating and storing mechanism, the combination of a tower having a height approximately half the height of the topmost tier of ice, an elevator comprising a stationary inclined runway with its upper end fixed to the top' of said tower, a horizontal driving shaft provided with sprockets and mounted on said tower near the upper end of said runway in position to permit the blocks of ice to pass along said runway and under said shaft, an endless chain belt mounted on said sprockets with its lower run close to the bottom of said runway and extending into the water and constituting the active run, a second horizontal driving shaft provided with a sprocket and mounted on said tower directly beneath the first shaft in position to permit the blocks of ice to pass over it, a gear wheel secured to each driving shaft, said gear wheels being in mesh to drive said shafts in opposite directions, a driving gear in mesh with one of said gear wheels, a clutch for at will stopping and starting said driving gear, a distributing gallery comprising two sections of runway hinged to each other, adjustable suspending means for maintaining one of said sections horizontal and raising and lowering it at will between levels above and below the top of said tower, a hinge joint fixed to said tower eccentric to said second driving shaft to connect the end ofthe other section of said runway to said tower, and an endless delivery chaln mounted on the sprocket on said second driving shaft and extending along both sections of said runway with the upper run of said delivery chain constituting the active run.

15. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering it to an icehouse, comprising a constantly inclined endless elevating conveyer having a lower run moving upwardly and adapted to engage blocks of ice to raise them from the body of water to a higher level, and another endless conveyer associated with the delivery end of the first named conveyer to receive on its upper run the blocks of ice discharged from the first conveyer, the second named conveyer delivering the ice to the icehouse.

16. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering it to an icehouse, comprising an inclined endless elevating conveyer with the lower run of the conveyer constituting the propelling means for elevating the ice from the body of water to a point of delivery, another endless conveyer leading from the delivery point of the first "named conveyer to the icehouse, and drivinggearing for the conveyers engaging the latter at their adjacent ends, said gearing being connected to rotate in opposite directions, and thereby cause like runs of the two conveyers to move in opposite directions.

17. Means for elevating ice from a body of water and delivering the elevated ice to an icehouse, comprising two endless conveyers one delivering to the other, one of the conveyers constituting an elevating conveyer with its lower run dipping in the body of water and constituting the propelling means for elevating the ice, said elevating'conveyer having the other end provided with a drive shaft, and the second conveyer .having a drive shaft therefor located beneath the first named drive shaft, and gearing connecting the two drive shafts and causing them to rotate in opposite directions.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my si nature.

HAROLD BLAKE wbon. lVitnesses B. B. PHILLIPS, H. E. DoUGn'rY. 

